Caroline Culley Liberti

Caroline Culley (Stine) Liberti of Naples, Florida and Haverford, Pennsylvania died peacefully at home on Tuesday, August 22, 2023, of natural causes, surrounded by family.

Born May 6, 1937 in New York, New York, she was the daughter of the late Silas E. Culley and the late Frances Buchbinder Culley. 

Caroline was raised in rural New Jersey, where her parents ran a successful day camp for area youth in their later years. Her childhood dream was to be a professional baseball player when she grew up. She enjoyed school and excelled in academics at Maple Mead School, North Brunswick High School, and Dickinson College, where she majored in English. She was featured in Glamour Magazine as a top co-ed to watch while at Dickinson, where she shined both socially and academically, and in leadership roles in the School Senate. She was admitted to University of Pennsylvania Law School and attended for a short time after college, withdrawing after being disappointed that she was the only woman in her entire class. After having five children, she finally fulfilled her dream of law school, graduating from Villanova University School of Law in 1978.

After gaining experience in criminal law, she was appointed District Justice in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, and served for 20 years, winning elections to serve three six-year terms. During her career as a judge, she dedicated herself to ensuring justice in creative and fair ways. She was dedicated to ensuring the rights of those defendants who came before her court, while also maintaining strong relationships with the local police force and detectives. 

She was an active member of the Rotary Club, the North Ardmore Civic Association, and was the first woman ever accepted into the Union League Club of Philadelphia. She held positions on the Boards of Directors of the Montgomery County Bar Association, the Montgomery Country Day School, and the North Ardmore Civic Association. She and her late husband, J. David Stine, hosted numerous events for the Children’s House (Gladwyne Montessori), Montgomery Country Day School, and the North Ardmore Civic Association. She was a part of the planning committee for local Lincoln Day Dinners. She was featured numerous times in local newspapers for her acumen and the many tough decisions she made as a judge as well as for her leadership in the many communities of which she was a part. 

She enjoyed world travel, spending time with her children and grandchildren, playing golf in retirement in Naples, Florida, throwing parties and hosting gatherings and holidays for family and friends. She enjoyed trips to Maine with close friends from Naples and to Stone Harbor, New Jersey and California with family.

She was the wife of the late Paul Alfonso Liberti, with whom she traveled extensively and enjoyed socializing with friends in Naples. She also was the wife of the late Dr. John David Stine, father to their five children.

Caroline is survived by her son, Peter Culley Stine of Bloomsburg, Pennsylvania and his children Rachel and Milo Stine, her daughter Laura Kristy (Stephen Lyle) of Belvedere, California and her children Chet (Chandler), Lena, and Jake Kristy, her daughter Mary Stine Rothman of North Canton, Ohio and her children Taylor and Jessie Rothman, and her daughter Anne (Larry) Zimmerman of New York, New York and their children Perry, Lizzie, Luke, and Susannah Zimmerman. She is survived by two great-grandchildren, Scarlett and Andressa Kristy. 

She was preceded in death by her son, John Perry Stine.

Relatives and friends are invited to her Celebration of Life on Tuesday September 5, 2023 at 1:00 PM at St. David's Episcopal Church, 763 S. Valley Forge Rd., Wayne, PA 19087.

Interment will be held in St. David's Episcopal Cemetery, Wayne, PA.

In lieu of flowers, contributions in her honor may be made to Cycle for Survival, Caroline's favorite cause.

Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center

Cycle for Survival

P.O. Box 2743

New York, NY 10087-7432

Arrangements by DellaVecchia, Reilly, Smith & Boyd Funeral Home, Inc. of West Chester, PA 610-696-1181 www.DellaFH.com